How to Choose a Freezer for your Home

Written by Donald Grummett


Even if it is a low income housing option, you cannot spare home security atrepparttar cost of a fancy carpet or some other flooring supplies.

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March 1, 2005

The average household freezer is a silent slave. It operates year in and year out, requiring nothing other than a constant supply of electricity. Eventually, though it may need to be replaced.

The following are a few considerations that will allow you to make an informed decision about its purchase.

Most consumers have only a few concerns (other than price) when purchasing a freezer:

1 … What size do I require? 2 … How much electricity will it consume? 3 … What (if any)options do I need?

Size --------------------------------------

Size of course depends upon your needs. Generally though, most people purchase too large a freezer. They base their judgement upon perceived usages rather than real usage. Their reasoning is: We “might” need a larger one in case there “may be” a special atrepparttar 100016 grocery store on something. The reality though is that most freezers end up being operated only half full.

Also, remember that all frozen foods should be consumed within six weeks. Foods stored longer than that can become dehydrated no matter how well wrapped. Asrepparttar 100017 moisture leavesrepparttar 100018 food both taste and nutritional value will be lowered. So anything stored longer than six weeks will probably end up being thrown out. As an example, how much ice cream have you thrown away because ice crystals started to form insiderepparttar 100019 package? That ice forming insiderepparttar 100020 package is dehydration at work.

Therefore, when trying to decide how big a freezer to purchase we suggest using what we callrepparttar 100021 “six week rule”.

To use this rule you first approximate how much “frozen” food your family consumes in a six-week period. Then envision how much space those items would require if stacked on your kitchen counter. That will give you an idea ofrepparttar 100022 physical size of freezer you require.

Lastly, don’t forget thatrepparttar 100023 chest style freezer will require twicerepparttar 100024 floor space of an upright. This may be an important factor if you live in an apartment.

Electricity consumed --------------

Although freezers are efficient consumers of electricity they will definitely increase your electrical bill.

An upright freezer consumes more electricity. This is because every time it is openedrepparttar 100025 cold air spills out onto repparttar 100026 floor. Consequently, it runs more frequently. Also today’s uprights are often frost free, which by their nature consume much more electricity. So we have to pay forrepparttar 100027 advantage of not having to defrost it.

Chest freezers are more efficient consumers of electricity becauserepparttar 100028 cold air lies inside even thoughrepparttar 100029 lid is lifted to accessrepparttar 100030 contents. But, chest types are manual and will need to be shut down and defrosted once a year.

Are there ways to lowerrepparttar 100031 electrical consumption of our freezers? Perhaps.

To lower electrical consumption some people only use their freezer seasonally. During summer and fall, when freshly grow food is available, they clean outrepparttar 100032 freezer and turn it off. It is started back up again for winter and spring usage. This practise is common with gardeners who primarily want to store their fall vegetables. Seniors also do this because getting out inrepparttar 100033 winter is more difficult. Therefore they use a freezer to reducerepparttar 100034 number of trips torepparttar 100035 grocery store.

Some people are now suggesting a practice called freezer blocking to lower consumption. This entails filling any unused space inrepparttar 100036 freezer with blankets or boxes of insulation. The theory is that onlyrepparttar 100037 food area would be cooled because air circulation is being blocked off from unused sections. The smallerrepparttar 100038 space being cooled,repparttar 100039 lessrepparttar 100040 freezer should operate.

Baking Soda for Cleaning

Written by Rosana Hart


Baking soda is a common, inexpensive household item that can be used for many kinds of cleaning projects. In an era when we are all exposed to many toxic chemicals, it's nice to know that something so mild can be effective. We actually make a form of baking soda in our own saliva, where it helps keep plaque from forming!

Here are some ofrepparttar uses of baking soda for cleaning:

I've long used baking soda and white vinegar to keep my kitchen and bathroom drains clear and fresh smelling. I just put a teaspoon or less of baking soda intorepparttar 100015 drain and then pour in about a tablespoon of vinegar. I must admit that I amrepparttar 100016 kind of cook who rarely measures anything, andrepparttar 100017 same is true for these proportions, so feel free to experiment to find what works best in your sinks. Start small, though --repparttar 100018 combination of baking soda and vinegar causes an active fizzling and bubbling!

In fact, that bubbling process is how you can tell ifrepparttar 100019 box of baking soda you've had around forever is still good. Just followrepparttar 100020 directions above. Your soda is still good if it bubbles away merrily.

Speaking of drains, if your drain is clogged, you can try using a lot more baking soda. One recipe is to pour a cup of baking soda downrepparttar 100021 drain, then a cup of vinegar. Wait a few minutes, or longer, and then runrepparttar 100022 hot water tap and see if you have clearedrepparttar 100023 drain. It could take overnight.

Another well-known use of baking soda is to keep an open box inrepparttar 100024 refrigerator to neutralize odors. Because baking soda cuts smells, it can also be put inrepparttar 100025 bottom tray of an oven-type electric toaster, to reduce burnt smells. Another smell-removing cleaning tip is to put baking soda into bottles or jars that milk has left a smell in.

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